Winds of change blow strong for Carters

Ryan Carters’ ‘Batting for Change’ charity has blown its pre-KFC T20 Big Bash League target out of the water in a bid to educate some of the world’s most vulnerable people.

The brainchild of Carters, the charity teamed with the LBW (Learning for a Better World) Trust to enlist cricket fans from around the country to pledge money for every six hit by the Sydney Sixers in BBL|04.

Before a ball was bowled, the aim was to raise $66,666 towards the education of 500 young and impoverished Indian women – a target significantly more than the $30,000 raised by Carter and the cellar-dwelling Sydney Thunder last summer that allowed for three new classrooms to be built at the Heartland School in Kathmandu in Nepal.

After 35 matches, a runners-up finish and 47 Sixers sixes this summer, Carters had raised more than $103,000 – a 65 per cent increase on the original target and a 343 per cent boost to last year’s total.

First imagined while floating down the Eg and Selenga rivers of north-west Mongolia, Batting for Change was never going to be your run-of-the-mill charity – nor is Carters your run-of-the-mill founder, or cricketer.

"At that stage of my life I was at a bit of a crossroads in my cricket career where I had made a decision to move from Victoria to New South Wales," Carters told cricket.com.au last year.

"And I was thinking about ways I could combine my career in cricket with doing some things to help the people in the world who need it most.

"I've always believed that education is the best way to do that, because education is a gift that lasts a lifetime. It enables people to make their own choices in life - about where they find employment and how they raise their family - with an educated mind."

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Ryan Carters in the boat where Batting for Change was born // Sourced

Fast forward six rounds into BBL|04 and Batting for Change had raised around $40,000, at an average of $1,600 per six – to reach the $66,666 target however, an estimated average $2,000 per maximum would be required.

With falling short of their total a distinct possibility, Carters took to Channel Ten’s BBL broadcast in Brisbane to share his vision with cricket fans across the country.

Not even a Doug Bollinger cameo could stop Ryan Carters spreading the word

In a testament to Carters’ passion and commitment to the cause, more than $60,000 was raised over the next three weeks as the Sixers romped into the final, finishing with more than $100,000 in pledges.

Cricket legends Greg Chappell, Adam Gilchrist, Rahul Dravid and Kumar Sangakkara also got involved, along with current Australia players Steve Smith, Brad Haddin Nathan Lyon and Ellyse Perry.

With the Batting for Change season now over, Carters will head back to red-ball cricket for the NSW Blues, no doubt eyeing an even more successful BBL|05.